Southfields

What Southfields does

Southfields is an investment holdings, private equity and growth stage venture firm founded by internationally awarded entrepreneur and investor Shukri Toefy, headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The firm cultivates innovative and sustainable businesses and aims to develop a diversified portfolio of assets, interests and investments across professional services, communications, media, technology, digital, data, and business solutions, operating across both developed and emerging markets.

The firm does not sell a product or operate a software platform; its offering is financial capital combined with strategic value creation. Southfields' stated approach is premised on forging strong alliances with management teams and co-investors to drive strategic growth, with value creation via capital investment, active board participation, engagement with management teams, and facilitation of value-adding interactions between portfolio companies. The firm has executed at least one acquisition: Migration, acquired 2022-09-13 for an undisclosed amount.

Southfields positions itself as a black-owned and managed company with roots in South Africa and a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, holding B-BBEE credentials to strengthen the broad-based Black Economic Empowerment goals of South African businesses. Its investment strategy is anchored in an ESG evaluation framework aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, organised around three pillars: Environmental Impact, Diversity Equity & Inclusion, and Community Engagement. The firm has a publicly disclosed email ([email protected]) and phone (+27 83 786 8169), with office address Unit 2, Rivonia Gate, Johannesburg.

Name

Southfields

Legal name

Southfields

Website

https://southfieldsgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Southfields is an investment holdings, private equity and growth-stage venture firm founded by Shukri Toefy that deploys capital into professional services, communications, media, technology, digital, data, and business solutions companies across developed and emerging markets, with a B-BBEE-credentialed and ESG/SDG-aligned mandate.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Equity & Venture Capital

NAICS

All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399)

akta.pro primary industry

Business Services (B2B) Growth Equity (FSANACAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Geography-Specialist Buyout (Regional/Country-Focused) (FSANABAF)

Keywords

• Private equity investments
• Venture capital funding
• Growth stage capital
• Portfolio investment management
• ESG investment strategy

Headquarters

HQ city

Sandoná

HQ country

Colombia

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Core offering

Southfields is an investment holdings, private equity and growth-stage venture firm that develops a diversified portfolio of assets, interests and investments in professional services, communications, media, technology, digital, data, and business solutions. The firm provides capital investment, active board participation, management team engagement, and value-adding interactions between portfolio companies, with an investment thesis aligned to ESG principles and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Product overview

Southfields is an investment holdings, private equity, and growth stage venture firm that cultivates innovative and sustainable businesses. The company does not offer a distinct technology product or software platform; rather, it operates as a financial investment firm that develops a diversified portfolio of assets, interests, and investments in professional services, communications, media, technology, digital, data, and business solutions. Its investment approach involves forging alliances with management teams and co-investors to drive strategic growth, creating value through capital investment and active board participation rather than through a product-based offering.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Private Equity Investment Capital investment and active board participation in growth-stage companies across professional services, communications, media, technology, digital, data, and business solutions, aimed at building a diversified portfolio of assets and interests to drive strategic growth.
• Growth Stage Venture Capital Equity capital deployment into growth-stage ventures with the potential for global scale and impact, supported by management team engagement and value-adding interactions between portfolio companies.
• ESG-Aligned Investment Strategy Investment approach grounded in an ESG evaluation framework aligned with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, focused on three pillars: Environmental Impact, Diversity Equity & Inclusion, and Community Engagement, intended to drive positive and lasting impact for companies, employees, communities, and the environment.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Ethos Private Equity: A leading South African private equity firm investing across multiple sectors with a domestic and pan-African mandate. Directly comparable to Southfields as a Johannesburg-based PE investor pursuing diversified growth and buyout opportunities in the same geography.
• Convergence Partners: Africa-focused growth equity firm investing in technology, media, telecommunications, and digital sectors. Highly comparable to Southfields given the overlapping investment thesis across communications, media, technology, and digital.
• AfricInvest: Pan-African private equity and venture capital firm investing across multiple sectors and growth stages. Comparable to Southfields given shared African growth-equity mandate and multi-sector portfolio approach.
• Development Partners International (DPI): Pan-African private equity firm managing funds that invest across Africa with a focus on sustainable value creation. Comparable as a regional, Africa-focused growth equity investor with similar sector breadth and ESG orientation.

Emerging players

• Knife Capital: South African growth-stage venture capital firm investing in technology-enabled and business services companies. Comparable as a growth-stage investor with overlapping sector focus including technology, digital, and business solutions.
• Novastar Ventures: Africa-focused venture capital firm backing early- and growth-stage businesses serving African consumers and SMEs. Comparable given shared emerging-market growth equity mandate and pan-African ambition.

Broad incumbents

• Actis: Global emerging-markets private equity and infrastructure investor with significant Africa exposure. Comparable as a much larger incumbent operating in the same emerging-market PE category Southfields targets.
• Helios Investment Partners: Africa-focused private equity firm with a pan-African investment strategy across multiple sectors. Comparable as an established incumbent in the same regional PE space, against which Southfields will compete for deals and LPs.

Regional players

• Metier Capital: South African private equity and advisory firm focused on sustainable growth investments across Africa. Comparable given shared regional focus, ESG orientation, and growth-stage investment approach.
• Inq Capital: South Africa-based private equity firm targeting mid-market growth opportunities with transformation credentials. Comparable to Southfields in geography, B-BBEE positioning, and growth-equity mandate.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Southfields